Red String
by PaperHeadPhones
Summary: Connections are established through touch, and after the flesh pulls away all that is left is a small red thread that ties us all together. - AU. Yaoi. Rated T for now, subject to change.
1. Chapter One

A/N: AU/Mildly OOC. Because I needed to write some Grelliam to please my soul.

Yaoi. **Don't like**, _**don't read**_.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kuroshitsuji. Yana Toboso does.

xxxx

Grell clenched his grocery bags tightly in his gloved hand, his bright red hair becoming dotted with pieces of white fluff as he slowly walked the deserted streets in the direction of his small apartment. He hummed quietly to himself, adding a slight bounce to his step as he rounded a sharp corner.

It was a month until Christmas, and already London was hidden underneath layer upon layer of snow. Unfortunately, it was only pretty as it fell. Since, thanks to how dirty London really was, it all eventually changed into a dull gray shade.

Grell hated the winter, honestly. It was cold, wet, and worst yet it ruined his precious heels.

It was enough to drive a woman mad, truthfully.

He sighed slightly as he turned the corner and approached his apartment, eyes falling on the lone moving truck in front of it. He raised an eyebrow questioningly, but thought nothing of it for the moment.

People moved in and out of the small building frequently enough that a moving truck was a typical sight to see in front of the complex.

Grell yawned quietly as he climbed his stairs, eying the workers below pull things from the back of the large transport and start bringing them up the stairs.

Furrowing his brows, he turned away when he got to his floor. He pushed all thoughts of the workers and the new tenent out for the time being as he felt a dull ache in the center of his back alert him to the fact that he was awake still, and that he had work at five the next morning

_Goddamn._

Grell swore softly as he rushed to his door, setting his bags down carefully on the dirty grund of the small hallway before digging around his pocket for his key. Finding it, he quickly unlocked his door and bent down to pick up his bags.

"Ah!"

Something, or someone crashed into Grell's hip and he promptly lost his balance and fell over onto his side, knocking his head against his doorframe.

"Honestly."

Grell cursed, clenching at where his head now stung painfully as tears dotted the corners of his eyes.

"Miss, are you alright?"

'Miss?' Grell wondered, looking up at the speaker curiously. Everyone in the building knew he was really a man, despite his womanly figure and insistance to be called as such.

His eyes widened as they fell upon the face of the speaker, his heart hammering in his chest.

The man, in a word, was gorgeous.

He had dark hair that was combed back expertly so that the bangs that Grell could see the man possessed wouldn't fall into his vision. He sported thin, silver framed glasses at he pushed up with the tips of his fingers.

However, the thing that struck Grell the most was the man's eyes.

They were a duel coloured green blend, much like his own. However they held no emotion, and Grell felt a shiver of excitement run down his spine as they settled on his own.

He blushed, looking away. "A-ah… Yes, I believe so…" He trailed off, looking up at the man. "Was it you that hit me?"

The man nodded, offering a hand to the red-head, which he took gladly.

The man pulled him easily to his feet, and Grell took a moment to appreciate his strength as he shook the man's hand briskly. "You're the new tenent, non~? I'm Grell Sutcliff, and I live here in 13D, obviously. Where are you moving into?"

"14D." The man said shortly, adjusting his glasses once more. "My name is William T. Spears. I apologize for any harm I accidently brought to your person with my carelessness."

"Ah~!" Grell said brightly, grinning at the man. "Then we're neighbours! Awesome~" He giggled quietly before glancing at his watch. "Ah! Sorry, Will~ I have to get to bed. I gotta be up in less than five hours~" He purred, taking his hand again before scooping up his groceries and bouncing into his apartment.

"Bye-bye~!" Grell waved slightly, using his foot to slowly close the door. "Maybe we'll see each other later."

With that, the door snapped shut.

Grell grinned to himself as he peeked through his peephole, watching William stand in front of his door for a moment before seeming to heave a sigh and turned away, walking quickly out of view.

Grell leaned away from the glass, smiling to himself as he hummed happily, setting his few groceries in the fridge before heading up to bed.

_How interesting that man is~_ He mused as he brushed his hair. _He seems distant though…_

xxxx

A/N: Please read and review.


	2. Chapter Two

A/N: Welp. I have no reviews on this story still. I know. I suck, I'm not sorry.

Hope you like this chapter. Grell is slightly OOC at the end, regarding a certain black haired demon. But there's a reason for that.

Disclaimer: Do not own. Thank you.

xxxx

"Grell! Do you have those sketches?"

The red-head spun on his heels, quickly yanking a folder off his cluttered desk before turning and pushing them into the Head Assistant's hands. "Here you are~!" He said cheerfully, already turning away when the man spoke up again.

"Remember, you have to be at the meeting in five."

Grell pouted, tilting his head at the brown haired man. "Alan, I thought it was Ronny's turn!"

"Well, you have to instead. Ronald is late again today, and he's still downtown. With the afternoon traffic, he won't get here until four." The man said apologetically, shrugging his slim shoulders.

"Bloody hell, that boy." Grell sighed, rubbing his temples before tossing the excess papers he was holding onto his desk. "Fine, I'll attend. I'm assuming I will be taking notes?"

"Yes. Do hurry, you now have two minutes."

"Shit!" Grell hisses, quickly scooping up his precious red laptop from his desk before brushing past Alan, "Thanks, Alan!" He yelled over his shoulder, jogging quickly down the hallway, dismissing the large crowd in front of the elevator is a sight and pushed the door to the stairs open, glaring at them defiantly. He huffed slightly and took off running, jumping the stairs two at the time as quickly as his heels could carry him.

He slammed the door to the seventh floor open, panting heavily as he brushed past other workers; suddenly bursting into the meeting room.

"You're late, Grell."

Grell froze, a tremor of fear rippling through him before turning to frown nervously at his boss, the one and only Sebastian Michaelis. The face and brains of their fashion company.

"I do apologize," Grell panted slightly, still out of breath, before taking a deep breath and continuing. "I was unware that I was to be attending, but despite Ronald's blunder; I am here." He huffed slightly, turning his face away from the gorgeous man before calmly brushing past him and taking a seat against the wall.

There was hushed murmurings, but Grell took no notice of them as he quickly opened his laptop; shaking it from its slumber before opening a blank document and, with a couple clicks of its keys, started up the program he had installed that automatically typed out any words it heard.

"Are we ready to begin?" Sebastian smirked, and there were several muffled approvals before the raven haired man nodded and suddenly turned to the projecter screen behind him. "Well then, if you will all please turn your attention to the chart on the screen. You will see that…"

Grell started to tune the raven haired man out as he pointed at different things on the screen, his eyes wandering to his screen, absently watching as each word typed itself into place rapidly.

However, this seemed to accelerate the level of boredom he was starting to acquire.

Well, that was until Sebastian introduced the next speaker.

"Now, I'd like to introduce our newest business associate. He is the president of SDS, which you all know to be a high ranking fashion company like ourselves. So, please step up here and introduce yourself Spears."

Wait. Did he say 'Spears'?

Grell's head jerked up, and his mouth dropped open in surprise.

"Hello." The man said emotionlessly, pushing up his glasses with the butt of his silver pen. "My name is William T. Spears. It is an honour to be working with you all."

Grell blinked before suddenly blushing as he realized that William had obviously witnessed his sudden appearance before the meeting had begun; not to mention his dishevealed look from his running up the stairs.

Just then, William's eyes flicked over to Grell's and Grell froze; trembling slightly as he watched a flash of recognition pass through those duel toned eyes before disappearing once more.

"As I was saying…"

xxxx

As the meeting was dying down, Grell set his computer to one side nervously. He took a deep breath before suddenly standing and fearlessly approaching the cold natured man that was standing just beside the door.

"Hello, again~!" Grell said cheerfully, moving so he was standing in front of the exit as he gave the man a small wave. "Small world, ne~?"

William merely looked at him for a long moment before adjusting his already perfectly set glassed. "…Yes. It seems so. How long have you worked under Michaelis, if I may ask?"

"You may~" Grell smiled, winking playfully before bringing a hand to his mouth; tapping his lips thoughtfully. "Neeeee… I would say about four years or so. I work exclusively in the design department." He added, putting his hands behind his back. "Not as impressive as you, though! The president of SDS, eh?"

"Yes." William said simply, adjusting his glasses once more. "How old are you, Mister Sutcliff?"

Grell frowned, narrowing his eyes slightly as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Miss."

"Pardon?"

"It's 'Miss. Sutcliff'." He very nearly growled, "I am a lady."

"Pardon my bluntness, but you are very clearly a man and I will address you as su-"

There was suddenly a loud resounding slap that echoed through the room, which instantly fell silent.

"I. Am. A. Woman." Grell hissed through sharp, pointed, gritted teeth, his eyes flashing dangerously as his left hand throbbed painfully.

William slowly turn to look to look at the seething red-head, the left side of his face bright red in the distinct shape of a hand mark. He didn't say anything, and that infuriated Grell even more.

"Did you hear what I said, you bloody prat?" He demanded angrily, raising his hand as if to strike the man again. "I am a la-"

"Grell."

Grell froze as Sebastian's hand grabbed his own, his eyes growing wide as he trembled in fear; turning to look at the dark haired man. "S-Sebas-"

"Go back to your office." Sebastian said coldly, his red eyes glaring into Grell's green ones with thinly veiled anger.

Grell paled before quickly yanking his hand out of Sebastian's. He tucked it against his chest as he quickly scooped up his laptop and fleed the room, feeling an icy stare on his back the entire way down the hall.

But who's eyes, is the question.

xxxx

A/N: So, why is Grell so scared of Sebastian? You'll find out in the next chapter, folks. Stay tuned! Also, Sebastian isn't a demon in this story. He's a normal human. ...Well, somewhat normal. You'll get what I mean soon enough, darlin's!

Please read and review.


	3. Chapter Three

A/N: Oh look, I'm back. So, I got my first review on this story! HALLELUYAH, JESUS TAP-DANCING CHRIST. Thank you, "music lover LOL" (I presume that you were too lazy to actually long in, so I shall use the name you gave me.)

But, but, but. One review, guys? C'mon, please? Reviews make me want to write. Give me some lovin'.

This chapter is the beginning of a flashback that shows Grell and Sebastian's relationship in the past. Also, this stories categories are gonna change. See, I started with this idea that it was going to be a tender, fluffy, smut filled love story...

Then it turned into angst, character death, rape, and mutilation.

_Yeah._

Nothing bad in this chapter. Except excessive violence via Sebastian's bastard self. Hintings of Clarell. (To those of you who are unware, that is ClaudexGrell. My favorite crack OTP.)

Grammar and spelling mistakes everywhere, probably. I tend to write these things in the wee hours of the morning.

Please enjoy.

xxxx

It has been like a dream at first. A perfect dream filled with romance and kindness. But, then the darkness began to seep in and stain his perfect dream until it became a mangled copy of itself.

A nightmare through and through.

xxxx

"Sebas-chan!" Grell yelled suddenly, rushing up to the dark haired student. He blushed slightly as those red eyes focused on him, showing no emotion from behind the mask the older of the two put up.

"Ah, Grell. That is it?" Sebastian asked calmly, turning his body to face the red-head.

Grell swallowed nervously, fidgeting in place for a long moment before his words finally broke through.

"I-I like you! Please go out with me!"

Grell felt his face heat up as the taller man stayed silent. His tears began to prickle with the sensations of tears as he felt his heart begin breaking apart in his slender chest.

"Okay."

Grell jerked his head up instantly, his eyes wide behind his simple silver frames. "R-really?" He gasped, not quite believing his ears.

Sebastian smirked, his fingers brushing Grell's cheek gently. "Yes, really." He murmured before slowly leaning in and pressing his lips against the red-head's.

And so Grell Sutcliff had his first kiss at the age of sixteen, a freshman in High School, with Sebastian Michaelis; Age seventeen, a senior.

When they pulled apart, Grell was giddy with excitement. And only when someone coughed did he realize that Claude, Sebastian's best friend, stood there and had witnessed the whole thing. Grell flushed as his eyes widened, staring at those emotionless yellow eyes of the man's. Claude simply looked at him for a long moment before some sort of emotion flickered over his face before it disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

"C'mon, Sebastian." He said quietly, "The bell is about to ring, and you know how Mr. Tanaka hates it when we're late."

Sebastian nodded and turned back to Grell, "Walk you home after school?"

Grell blinked, nodding his head slightly at the offer. "S-sure." He stammered, looking up at Sebastian with an owlish expression.

Sebastian's smirk widened and he turned away, walking away quickly to catch up to Claude.

They walked in silence for a moment before Claude finally spoke, "What are you doing to do to him?"

"Play, of course." Sebastian answered immediately, his eyes glinting maliciously at the thought of his new toy. "He's a strong one, though naive." He added offhandedly, watching Claude's expression out of the corner of his eye. "I want to break him... Ruin him. Like the others."

_Ah._ _There it was_. The only tell on Claude's face that the other was irritated by what Sebastian said was the tiny twitch of his eyebrow.

Even Sebastian almost missed it.

His hand suddenly snapped out, slamming the slightly taller man into the lockers behind him. Sebastian leaned in, his eyes mocking the man silently. "Do you have a problem with that, Claude? Does it bother you that I wish to break him? Tell me... Do you like him?"

Claude looked at him emotionlessly for a long moment before shoving his hand away from throat and taking a step to the side. "No." He said simply, but Sebastian could hear the doubt in that one word.

"How interesting." Sebastian murmured, putting his knuckles against his lips as he grinned. "But you're lying."

"I am no-"

"Now, now. You do not need to deny it, I can hear it in your words." Sebastian mocked, waggling a finger at the other.

"Just don't take it too far, Sebastian." Claude practically pleaded, and Sebastian's smirk widened.

"I'll take it as far as I deem appropriate, Claude." He said airily, waving his hand dismissively as he turned away.

"_Sick bastard_." Claude muttered almost inaudibly, and Sebastian's grin grew wider.

"What was that, I couldn't quite hear you."

"Nothing."

"Thought so."

xxxx

Weeks went by, and all Grell ever faced was Sebastian being the perfect gentlemen. In the month or so that went by, Grell came to the realization that the body he had wasn't the one he should have been born in. This resulted in him letting his hair grow out, the radiant red locks now at shoulders length instead of cut just below his ears. He wore make up, outlining his eyes is black liner and red powder, wearing false eyelashes, and even wearing heeled boots.

He was the happiest he had ever been.

Then one day, he skipped into the school building after a rather pleasant nights sleep and spotted the back of his boyfriend not far down the deserted hall. His face brightened and he quickened his pace before winding his arms around Sebastian's like he usually did. "Sebastia-"

Suddenly, there was a sharp pain across his face and he gasped as he tasted blood from where his abnormally sharp teeth cut into his cheek. The red-head blinked slowly before slowly turning his head to look up into Sebastian's shockingly cold eyes. He paled considerably, taking a shaky step back from the raven-haired man. "S-Seba-"

Sebastian's hand snapped out, incircling Grell's throat before suddenly spinning and pinning the slender man against the lockers with a loud 'crash' that echoed in the air around them. Grell gasped in pain as the lock on the door dug painfully into his back before uselessly trying to shove Sebastian off of him. "S-Sebastian, what are you do-!"

"You didn't answer my text from last night." The man said coldly, the ice in his tone making Grell's stomach drop to his toes.

"M-my phone is disconnected right now you k-know that!" He stammered out, trembling as Sebastian frowned deeply at him.

"You weren't out with anyone?"

"N-no! I was at home with Mama because she was having trouble breathing again last night!" Grell gasped out as he felt Sebastian's hand tighten around his neck. It was true though, he had been home the entire time from when he got home from work. His mother was deathly ill with lung cancer, but instead of spending her last days in the hospital, her last wish was to die at home in comfort. Grell took care of her at night, when he wasn't working, and during the day a hired nursed cared for the elderly woman.

"Are you sure?" Sebastian pressed on, leaning closer to Grell's face.

"Yes!" Grell yelled, feeling anger bubbling up in him as his hands shoved at Sebastian's shoulder suddenly, making him stumble back a couple of paces so Grell could breathe. "What the hell has gotten into you today? You're being an ass, you kn-"

_Smack._

Grell stumbled slightly before he fell onto his side, blood dripping from his lip as his eyes teared up from the pain. He stayed like that for a long moment before suddenly pulling himself to his feet; glaring daggers at Sebastian. "WHAT THE FU-"

_Smack._

_Smack._

**_Thud._**

Grell's vision blurred slightly as he cowered against the lockers, arms held out in front of his face defensively as Sebastian hit him repeatedly. The red-head could feel tears and blood dripping down his face and couldn't help but wonder one thing.

_Why? What had he done?_

He gasped sharply as Sebastian's fist connected with his cheek and his head slammed hard against the metal behind it. His arms immediately went limp, falling uselessly to the floor as a sharp kick to the ribs made him choke.

The blows stopped as Grell's vision blurred, turning black at the corners. He drifted in and out of consciousness, eyes staring uselessly down the hall. Through the fog, he could just pick up the sound of retreating footsteps.

He must have blacked out, because the next thing his eyes registered as a pair of black dress shoes next to his face; then the feeling of someone lifting him into their arms.

"Sebastian...?" He mumbled, and felt the arms around him tighten their hold slightly.

He closed his eyes, and the world went black.

xxxx

The next time he opened his eyes he was blinded by a harsh white light. He cried out weakly, turning his face away from the source only to groan slightly as he felt his body ache painfully.

"You're awake, yes!"

Grell slowly opened one eye as the cheerful voice reached his ears. He groaned slightly, turning his head towards the speaker. He eyes the woman in silence for a moment, taking in her large circular glasses and uniform before sliding his eyes shut again. "...Hospital...?" He rasped, opening his eyes slightly to look at the woman.

"Yes!" She said simply, looking down at Grell with a confusing mixture of emotions in her eyes. "How are you feeling, sir?"

Not bothering to correct her with his preference of title, he groaned again. "I hurt..." He rasped, closing his eyes against the harsh overhead lights. "How did I get here?"

"A dark haired man dropped you off, yes he did!" The nurse said, coming over to peer down at Grell. "Gave us your wallet so we had your ID, yes!"

"Oh?" Grell said, not really paying attention.

"Such a handsome man, he was! Carried you right up to the ER. Demanded that he be allowed to, yes he did! Though, he didn't leave a name unfortunately. Do you know who he is?"

"What did this guy look like again?"

"Black hair, tall, handsome as sin." She giggled, blushing slightly. "I couldn't see him very well, though. My eyes are poor, yes they are!"

Then why the hell are you a bloody nurse? Grell wondered with irritation before mulling over the woman's description. Could it have been Sebastian?

Grell smiled slightly, closing his eyes again. Suddenly exhausted he tuned out the flustered nurse and drifted off to sleep, where his dreams were filled with gentle arms and peircing yellow eyes.

xxxx

Grell woke up with an aching body, and a pounding head. Swearing softly, he reached out and groped wilding at the side of his bed where he knew a call button to be placed. He squeezed his eyes shut against the light, throwing a arm over his eyes to block out access light. As he did, he realized that it was weighed down with something. He pulled it away from his face, peering at it blindly before sighing as he recognized a cast covering his arm from hand to mid-forearm.

Finally he found the button and pressed it. A buzzing noise echoed around him, and the voice of the nurse from yesterday flooded into the room.

"Good afternoon, yes! You're awake, Mister Sutcliff?"

"Obviously." He mumbled, sighing loudly. "Where are my glasses?"

"They're uh... Well, I'll come show you, yes!"

"Show me wha-"

The nurse hung up and Grell glared at the ceiling angrily, feeling the urge to smack some manners into the woman.

Just then, his door opened and the woman rushed in; clenching something in her hand.

"My glasses?" He asked, his tone bored as the woman hesitated.

"Well, actually..."

He raised an eyebrow at her questioningly and she pressed on. "Your original glasses are actually in the drawer next to your bed. However, the frames are broken... These that I have here are a pair that the man who brought you in left at the nurses desk... There's a note with them, yes."

"Let me see." Grell said flatly, somewhat bewildered that someone would go to such trouble for him. For a moment, his heart begged that it was Sebastian's doing... But his brain said differently.

She passed him what she had been holding, which he now realized was a carefully wrapped package with a note taped to it. Curiously, he ripped the note off; Flipping it open so he could read what it said.

_Dear Grell,_

_I'm sorry I didn't make it in time to protect you from Sebastian's sick game. I wanted to warn you earlier, but he holds something above me that I cannot allow to become public._

_Please, take these glasses as an apology. I know they won't lessen your pain, but it's the best I can do in the current situation._

_-C.F._

_PS: I will come see you when I can. Wait for me. I'll explain everything when I do. I promise._

Grell furrowed his brow at the initials, his head slowly flipping through the names of all the people he knew. At first, he was drawing a complete blank before his eyes widened in realization. "_Oh_."

_C.F. _

_Claude Faustus._

Grell frowned to himself as he unwrapped the package he had left, the nurse reaching down to help him when he had trouble thanks to his broken hand. Finally, the paper unwound and Grell found himself staring at a pair of bright red frames.

He smiled softly, carefully putting them on his face before turning to look at his nurse. "How do they look?" He asked, adjusting them slightly as he watched the world come back into focus.

"They suit you, yes!"

He nodded at that, gently touching the frames before looking at the woman once more. "By the way, what's your name?"

"Mey-Rin, sir!"

"Call me '_miss_', please." He smirked, running his fingers through his hair. "I am a _lady_."

xxxx

A/N: Bloody hell, I really hate SebastianxGrell. Sadasdasd.

I must notify you that beginning with the next chapter, I shall be switching the rating to M... seeing as adult themes will take. I warn you, it will include highly graphic rape and mutilation. Do not read if you cannot stomach that sort of thing. If you wish to find it, either look on my profile, favorite the story, or search the Mature category when you fancy to do so.

Thank you, please read and review.


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